Article gathering apparatus



March 9, 1954 H. H. TALBOT 2,671,569

ARTICLE GATHERING APPARATUS s Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 1, 1950 lav/ 5. W

March 9, 1954 H. H. TALBOT 2,671,569

ARTICLE GATHERING APPARATUS Filed April 1, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 1954 H. H. TALBOT ARTICLE GATHERING APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 1, 1950 $.38 a NQ\\ Q\H 5 A l 1 F F Q0. H H M an R wlvo o|||||A m V A 1 A R Hiya! \w w mm . INVENTOR. #0144720 A. 722.807 81% Patented Mar. 9, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ARTICLE GATHERING APPARATUS Howard H. Talbot, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to United Engineering & Foundry Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application April 1, 1950, Serial No. 153,407

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to article handling apparatus and, in particular, to apparatus adapted to be used for receiving and gathering together billets and other elongated workpieces such as tubes, rods and shapes of various types which are supplied thereto by a shear runout table or the Intermediate the billet receiving apparatus and a chain-driven delivery table is positioned a downwardly sloping skid upon which billets, carried by the table, are delivered so that they may be selectively lifted therefrom by means of a rotary escapement and deposited upon the gathering device. The gathering device comprises a plurality of spaced looped chains, cables or the like which are lowered as articles are received thereby so that the top of the pile will remain substantially on a level with the plane of delivery of the articles thereto. Additional billets, therefore, are fed directly to the pile and need not be dropped through any substantial vertical distance whereby shock and vibration are avoided. Thus, the possibility of damage to the apparatus which could be caused by ordinary piling or gathering means, in which a free fall is permitted, is entirely eliminated. Depending upon the length of the workpieces being handled, by means of this device it is possible to gather more than one group at a time.

One of the objects of this invention, therefore, is to provide apparatus for receiving and gathering together, in a compact group, articles such as billets, tubes and rods as well as shapes of various types.

Another object of this invention is to provide apparatus adapted to receive billets rapidly and constantly fed thereto from which a single group or a plurality of groups may be formed, such group or groups removable therefrom without interference with the rate at which additional billets are brought up to position for deposit on the receiving apparatus.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a gathering apparatus which is efficient and rapid of operation, and economical. to construct and maintain.

These objects, as Well as the various other novel features and advantages of this invention, will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings of which:

Figure 1 is a plan View of the delivery end of a chain hot bed, and skids in combination with tube or billet gathering apparatus embodying the features of the invention herein disclosed,

Figure 2 is a sectional side elevation view taken at 11-11 of Figure 1,

ings 2T affixed to the guide it.

35a, is connected Figure 3 is an end elevation view taken at III-III of Figure 1, and

Figure 4 is a schematic trical control system.

With reference to Figure 1, there is shown a hot bed ll having a plurality of live transfer chains l2 by which billets, tubes or the like are carried to and deposited upon a bed or table l3, consisting of a plurality of skids l3a which are supported at their ends upon suitable pedestals l4 and I-beams 55. Though no positive transfer means are shown in combination with the table it, such would be provided in the transferring of billets other than rounds. A plurality of shock absorbing stops it, adjustable axially of the skids ltd, are pinned at the lower end thereof to a reciprocating cross-frame H which is slidable within a guide it positioned below and upon which the central portions of the skids l3a rest. Each of the stops is provided with a threaded rod [9 secured at one end to the cross-frame ll, encircled by an adjustable compression spring 2| and. passed through a member 22 which is slidable within the guide 53 relative to the crossframe 17. Two additional compression springs 23 are positioned between and assist in urging apart the members 22 and the cross-frames ll. By means of nuts 25. secured to the ends of the rods IS, the members 22 may be moved toward or away from the cross-frame ii for initial'adjustment of the spring compression. The cross-frame I1 is adjusted by means of two threaded shafts 25, threadably engaging nuts 26 aiiixed to the frame ill, and which are free to rotate in bear- The shafts '25 are rotated by two gear reduction units 28 connected to a suitable reversing electrical motor 29.

As best shown in Figures 1 and 2, a plurality of escapements 3!, each having two curved fingers diagram of the elecand spaced laterally of the skids Ida, are keyed to and rotated by a shaft 32 supported within suitable bearings 33 mounted upon pedestals 34. For rotating the shaft 32, a gear reduction unit 35, driven by means of a suitable electrical motor to one end thereof.

Adjacent to and at the delivery side of the escapements 3! there are skids 38 which are secured to a plurality of laterally-spaced billet receiving cradles 31.

are secured to the cradles by means of adjust able pivotal screw fastenings 39.

site side of the cradles, sprockets 4i, keyed to time links of the chains as. In order that the Across the mouth of the cradles 3'1 extend a plurality of chains 38 which On the oppo-- sprockets 4| will be rotated a like amount to pay out the same length of chain at each cradle, an equalizer shaft 44, extending laterally across the cradles and supported in suitable bearings 45, is provided with a plurality of sprockets 46 keyed thereto and over which continuous chains 41 pass for engagement with similar sprockets 48 secured to the shortwshatts 42.

Below-=the shock absorbing stops and secured to a continuous shaft 49 supported in bearings attached to the pedestals 34, there is a plurality of drums 52 to which the lower endsof the..chains 38 are secured. In passing to the drums 52, the chains are confined within suitableuguides 53'attached to the pedestals 34.

Also secured to the shaft 49 thereis a drum 54 upon which two cables 55 are wrapped. The cables pass from the drums and over two sheaves 56 supported at the top of a guide 5! and down into a pit where they areizattached to a weight 60 confined within the guide '51. For driving the shaft 49 and permitting 'on'ly'a pre-determined length of chain to be pa'yed out into the cradles, a gear reduction unit 58, connected to .an electrical motor 58a, is provided, having a clutch 59 between the'shaft thereof and the shaft 49. The chains'38 are quickly retrieved and rewoundupon the drums'simply by dis-engaging the clutchs59 and permitting the weights to to drop into the pit therebyto cause the drums 52 to rotate in a clockwise direction.

Located oneach sideof the center line of the bedl3, there is a lever 61 having two arms 62 and 63, which is free to rock in a supporting bearing 64 'mounted uponbars '65 positioned below the bed 13. The upper arm E52 projects above the skids l3a andis held in its depressed position so'long as a billet remains upon the bed l3. The lower lever arm"-63 is provided with a tension spring 65 fastened to the I-beam [5 which insures'that' the arm 62 will beraised to its upper position when there are no billets to be removed from thebed. Adjacent to each of the lower arms 63 there is a spring return limit switch 67 provided with a lever 68'adapted tobe engaged with and displaced in acounter-clockwise direction'by the action .of the arm63.

Each of the limit switches'isas shown in Figure 4, connected into the electrical circuit of the motor..35a whichrotates the escapements 3i and of the motor 58a by which the chain pay-out drums52 are controlled. Between the control potential leads'SQ and 1!,as shown in Figure 4, thereis provided .a manualto-automatic transfer switch 12 which is connected to a solenoid 13 through thespring return limit switches .61, one ,of which isshown in the circuit, anormally closedemergency stop switch 14, ande rotary cam typelimit switch 15. A manually operated starting ..-switch '76 is also provided in the circuit adapted to be employed when it may not be desired to operate the apparatus automatically. During normal -operationof the .apparatus,-the switch 16 remains open and the transfcrswitch 12 closed so that-as-long as one or more billets remainion'the tableat the discharge end, the limit switch 151 will be closed and the solenoid 13* energized. An armature 11 having contact bars 18, 1:9 and iii securedzthereto is drawn upward *by the energizedsolenoid v.13 to close the pairs of con'tacts 82f83 and-84 respectively. Since the manually operated starting switch 16 is' normally open, bridgingof the contacts "82 has no effect uponxthe'open circuit but the remaining bridged that the contact'bars 102 4 contacts 83 and 84 close the circuit of the motor 35:: to the motor power supply line.

For operating the motor 58a, a circuit similar to that employed for the motor 35a is provided. A manual-to-automatic transfer switch 85 is connected between the control potential leads 69 and 1| through the limit switch 61, a normally closed emergency stop switch 86,:a rota-rycam-type limit switch Bland-the solenoid 88. A'manualy operated starting switch 89 is also provided for use when automatic operation of the apparatus may not be desired. .So long as the solenoid 88 remains energized, an armature 9| is drawn into the upward position to-causethe contact bars 92, 93 and v94 thereof to bridge the pairs of contacts 95, 96

and?! thereby connecting, through contacts 96 and.9l, the motor 58a to the motor power supply line. Since the switch 39 is normally open, clos ing of the: contacts has no eifect upon the open circuit.

The camof the limit switch 1.5.is so adjusted that following the removal from the bed 1:3. ofthe last billet of a group, which permits the spring return limit switch to open=and break the circuit,

' the driving motor of the escapementfl continues to rotate until the succeedingcurvedlifting'finger of the escapement reaches the position at which the next billet'added'to the ibedzis to'beremoved thereby. By setting the cam of the limit switch to correspond with the setting .of the switch, the motor 580; will also continue tomotate and add more chain to the loop until-finallythe cam limit switches 75 and 87-open'and cause both of the motors to cease rotation-at the-same time.

The controlsystemfor operating the .clutch'ifl, includes a solenoid-98 which is connected, by a push button switch 299,:between the two potential control leads '69 and'll. WVhen the solenoid 38 is energized, an-armature NH isd-rawn upward so and I03 thereof will bridge the contacts 14 and ms respectively to close the circuit and to provide the necessary current for theclutch :59 whereby engagementthereof is effected. The operation of the billet receiving and gathering apparatus may be briefly summarized asfolows:

cradles. Thepush button 'switch99 is'closed to engage the clutch '59zso that the motor 58oz is connected to the drum shaft 49.

through the end of the bed. As soon as a billet strikes and depresses the limit switch 61, current is supplied for both the escapement motor 35a and the chain payout motor 581 so that rotation thereof takes place simultaneously. Thus the chain loops are gradually-increased in size as more billets are-added thereto thereby maintaining the top of the pile of the billets substantially at a constant level. Even though the billets may not be longenough to rest upon all of the chains, the equalizer shaf-t 44 insures 'that the same length of chain will =be-payed out ateach loop so that fouling thereof is prevented. When a sufiicient number of billets have been-collected in the chains, they "are-removed"therefrom by of the escapement'3l passes means of a sling or the like and the clutch 59 is disengaged to permit the chains to be retracted to their uppermost positions in the cradle in readiness for the next group of billets. Where the billets being handled are short enough to permit them to lie in end to end relationship on the bed 13, then it is possible to deposit, at the same time, more than one group thereof upon the cradle chains.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I have explained the principle and operation of my invention and have illustrated and described what I consider to represent the best embodiment thereof. However, I desire to have it understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

I claim:

1. Article gathering apparatus comprising a delivery table, a frame, a plurality of article supporting chains secured at one end to and spanning said frame, chain payout means secured to the opposite ends of said chains, article transfer means intermediate said table and said chains, said article transfer means including a plurality of article engaging and elevating members adapted to remove articles from said delivery table for deposit upon said chains, and means so disposed with respect to said last-mentioned 1 means and adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table for causing intermittent lengthening of said chains whereby the loops formed therein will grow uniformly as articles are deposited thereon to maintain the top of the group of articles at a substantially constant level.

2. Article gathering apparatus comprising article delivery means, flexible depressible article receiving means, article transfer means intermediate said delivery and said receiving means, said article transfer means including a plurality of laterally spaced article engaging and elevating escapements adapted to remove periodically articles from said delivery table for deposit upon said flexible means, a common driving means for said escapements, and means so disposed with respect to and adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table to cause said receiving means to be depressed as articles are deposited thereon to maintain the top of the group of articles at a substantially constant level.

3. Article gathering apparatus comprising a delivery table, a support, flexible depressible article receiving means secured at one end to said support, a drum to which there are attached the opposite ends of and upon which a portion of each of said flexible means is wrapped, a payout motor secured to said drum, article transfer means intermediate said last-mentioned means and said table, a driving motor attached to and for rotating said transfer means, and control means adjacent said article transfer means adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table for actuating said last-mentioned driving motor and said drum pay-out motor thereby causing said receiving means to be depressed as articles are deposited thereon to maintain the top of the group of articles at a substantially constant level.

4. Article gathering apparatus comprising a delivery table, loop forming article supporting means, transfer means for transferring articles from said table to said supporting means, an adjustable article engaging stop adjacent said transfer means, and common control means adjacent said transfer means and adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table for extending the length of loop of said supporting means and actuating said transfer means.

5. Article gathering apparatus comprising a delivery table, a frame, a plurality of article receiving chains secured at one end to and span ning said frame, chain payout means secured to the opposite ends of said chains, a drive connected to and for actuating said pay-out means, article transfer means intermediate said table and said chains, a drive with a common drive shaft for actuating said payout means and means adjacent said transfer means adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table whereby to control the rotation of said common drive shaft and the uniformity of the loops of said chains and simultaneously the actuation of said article transfer means.

6. Article gathering apparatus comprising a delivery table, a frame, a plurality of article receiving flexible members secured at one end to and spanning said frame, flexible member pay-out means comprising a common shaft, a plurality of drums secured to and spaced along said shaft, and to which there are secured the opposite ends and upon which portions of said flexible members are wrapped in one direction, a pay-out motor, a releasable clutch connecting together said motor and said shaft, additional drums spaced along and secured to said common shaft, flexible counter-torque imposing members secured at one end to said additional drums and upon which drums portions thereof are wrapped in a direction opposite to that from which said article receiving members are wrapped, tension applying means secured to the opposite ends of said counter-torque imposing members, article transfer and elevating means intermediate said delivery table and said article receiving flexible members, a motor for actuating said transfer means and common control means adapted to be actuated by an article on said delivery table whereby said pay-out motor and said transfer means motor are simultaneously actuated.

HOWARD I-I. TALBOT.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

